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hypeathon · 6 years ago

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RWBY - Volume 6, Chapter 11 Production Analysis

Previous Volume 6 Production Analysis Posts:

Chapters one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine & ten

A lot of anticipation for this episode was built up by various members of the CRWBY and for a few big reasons. Since the episode first premiered, a lot of buzz (pun not intended), debates and speculations have gone around across every corner of the internet within the fan base. So let’s try to make as much sense about everything that went down behind-the-scenes.

What is considered very surprising in hindsight is that despite its run time at only 15 minutes, it is the most action-packed episode since the volume premiere. That means that there is a lot to break down regarding who did what and while there has been some confirmation, it’s not all specified from sequence-to-sequence. No doubt such details will be reserved for audio commentaries in the eventual volume 6 blu-ray release, but for this analysis, much of what will be discussed is mostly educated guesswork.

That being said, one thing made clear is the list of storyboard artists and to a lesser extent, which one them were involved with the boards for which scenes. I made an observation last week how the last chapter had six artists assigned to handle the boards which is the most this volume has had since chapter 2 (though not the most in the series, that honor goes to chapters 1 & 2 of volume 5). In this episode, only Rachel Doda, Kevin Harger, and Cassidy Stone were credited. It is still unclear as to what the rhyme and reason is behind the amount of storyboard artists varying from episode to episode the way they do, though scheduling is a possibility. As for who was responsible for which scenes, it’s not totally certain which segments were done by Cassidy Stone, but thanks to the 11th episode of Crwby - Behind the Episode, it is confirmed that Rachel Doda was greatly involved with the first half while Kevin Harger largely did the latter half. There was one major thing that was the focus of how the visual direction flowed in the first fight, that being how Ruby and the others would each face Cordovin’s giant mech.

Scale was the main idea between eight characters and one giant machine. The camera needed to get the feel of how characters would dodge and defend themselves against every close-range and projectile attack and get closer towards whatever part of the mech they could get to. That represents the bulk of what needed to be considered between the director Kerry Shawcross and Rachel Doda. There was also a conscious attempt to keep things consistent in regards to which character was where on the part of the lead camera & layout artist, Kate Warner. For those unaware, camera layout artists are the ones that take the storyboards and animatics that establish the shot composition and timing of a scene and translate that into how the 3-D character and environment models will be placed through the “camera”, that being the way the viewer will see the scene. As mentioned before in one of the posts about RWBY’s cinematography, this team was established during volume 3′s production and due to sharing a few of the same members as in the storyboard department, communication between the two teams and the director would naturally be constant. For dialogue scenes, what matters between storyboards and camera layout is capturing the right mood and expression while focusing the shot on a character based on what a character is speaking about or interpreting as they listen. In action scenes, it’s about capturing the scenario of the conflict between who is fighting who, the size of the characters, the amount of characters fighting at once, etc..

In the production analysis for chapters 2 and 5 of this volume, I broke down observations of what could be the techniques Rachel Doda applies based on previous scenes she did storyboards for. Techniques such as camera rotation, having an object be placed in front the camera for blocking, having a character from the background be revealed to be in focus and long shots of characters in opposing positions are possibly Rachel Doda’s calling cards and while not a lot of them are seen in this fight due to it being different from most other ones, there is one other possible trick she applies in her boards. In instances such as the Weiss character short and Yang vs the bandits, both of which she did the boards for, they both applied a shot or two of characters that are about to perform an action in brief slow motion. This observation, like many unconfirmed things about these analyses, are of course speculative. But if this were the case, then it wouldn’t be a stretch to say the same technique was a applied in a much bigger way during the Cordovin mech fight, namely when the party split in three ways and when Ruby dodged and rode along each of missiles. It’s not quite like the flair in a missile circus as seen from Japanese animators such as the creator of the technique, animator Ichiro Itano and those inspired by the creator such as Shingo Fujii, Nozomu Abe, Seijoon Kim, and Yasushi Muraki, but I will certainly take what RWBY had to offer. Now if only we knew who animated that sequence.

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Though to backtrack, there is some confirmation who at least took part in animating the fight. Among the confirmed animators were Collin McAtee, Nicole LaCroix, and Vince Cappelluti. Vince seems to have specifically animated the sequence with Weiss helping provide split-second cover, not including effects while Nicole and Collin contributed to helping animated Cordovin’s mech such as in the opening cuts, among other things. Timing the mech to even move and function as convincingly slow as they did while also having other characters move in a nimble manner must have been an interesting challenge on their part. Some other noteworthy bits of animation were the way Qrow and Ruby each descended to cut down the mech. Similar to the sequence when Qrow and Ruby took down the Sphinx Grimm, there’s a lot of character between how each of them lunge down with their scythe weapons. One displays more technique due to experience and comes off more acrobatic while the other is more wild and eccentric which aligns a bit with the behind Ruby’s character design as Monty Oum stated working on with concept artist, Ein Lee. Another instance of good character animation in the midst of all the action was the small moment when Qrow and Ren destroyed the shield generator. Qrow would naturally spin his weapon before firing whereas Ren is more comfortable following his lead and time when he fires his weapon at the same time.

One glaring misstep though would be towards the end of the first half of the episode where Cordovin catches the missile Maria fired. Putting aside whether the idea of a missile not exploding on contact the way it did would be able to suspend the viewer’s disbelief, the issue is that it’s timed too abruptly. Up until that point, the mech’s movements have been animated in a consistently sluggish manner. So to have the hand catch the missile instantaneously felt very off though a possible solution in hindsight may not have required changing the animation. What could have helped alleviate the confusion was adjusting the camera in a more three-quarter view behind the missile and having it slowly zoom out as it gets closer to the mech so that when it’s caught, it would be a bit easier to see how it got caught in the viewers mind.

Speaking of camera movement, a much more positive sequence was Jaune dashing over to soften the impact of being swatted by the mech. As stated by Rachel Doda in CRWBY - Behind the Episode, this was a deliberate choice on Kerry’s part to get the sense of power behind the swing. The sequence also helped provide an example of how much camera positioning can make a difference in an action sequence. One complaint some fans expressed about the Battle of Haven episodes in volume 5 was the usage of reaction shots as if they utterly disrupted the flow of fights. However, as certain action scenes in volume 6 show, reaction shots are not inherently a bad thing and the effectiveness of them can depend on the right angle being used. In the shot where Jaune runs covers for Nora, the latter stays in the same position and doesn’t move. If the camera say, remained at a static eye level as we see Jaune run towards Nora, a given viewer might complain that Nora isn’t running away. However, since the camera only tracks to Nora briefly, then back to the mech and then proceeds to follow Jaune til he and Nora get hit, one’s belief is more suspended.

One aspect that definitely served a big part of what makes the first half of the episode what it is are the effects. We got a taste of this in the previous episode with Cordovin firing lightning dust, but now we get an array of various element-oriented dust effects, both in 3-D and 2-D. between the dust chargers, they each were given nuanced approaches in terms of how they built-up energy and how they were released. The ice dust blast emits energy in a more subdued manner before it interestingly releases cold, poofy-looking air and then unleashes a brief beam that recoils the cannon. When Weiss blocks the attack, the earth wall is in of itself pretty simplistic by just having the effect stretch. But the real charm is the 2-D effects of the smoke around the wall and most especially, the impact of the ice dust itself and how it forms from our direct point-of-view. By the following shot, we see the same impact from behind the characters which creates a combination of white flashes and dimmed lighting that nearly creates silhouettes. Moving on to when the earth dust is fired, small rocks appear and form and since they swirl in mass numbers, the cannon shakes around a bit. Once the dust is launched, rocks and boulders in larger chunks burst out. What helps sell the burst itself is how the light that was behind the rocks shoots out along with them to make the blast seem more fast and powerful. The smoke emitted upon impact and the white flashes from each cannon fire also help make the stalagmites being immediately formed seem more dangerous. Finally, there’s the wind dust blast which has the air swirl around before firing a burst with a couple of flashes and in the next shot, the blast resembles that of a beam accompanied with rings spreading out then dissolving.

Of course, there were more visual effects going on besides the varied dust cannon fire, one of which being the hard-light dust shield. This is apparently the official name of the type of dust seen in the form of shields and barriers as seen in Amnity Colosseum and the shape of Velvet’s weapons through her camera. This was not even the first time this type of dust was used since the CRWBY migrated to using Maya and 3DS Max as their main animation and modeling softwares, as it was technically used to power the train engine in chapter 10 of volume 4. Right now there’s not much to add other than that it dissipates in a manner similar to how each of the weapons appear. Also, since this was part of the scene, it’s pleasing to see how since this volume, the smoke from Nora’s grenades are not only officially given a cel-shaded pink color but that as they fired with enough distance, the trails start to wobble for lack of a better way of putting it. Other visual effects that have been seen and utilized before such as the waves on the bottom of the cliff side and the ice from Weiss’s dust usage have also been a part of the presentation, but probably the best moment outside of the dust cannon was the giant splash from Cordovin’s missiles. Being 2-D animated likely by Myke Chapman, this must have been tedious to animated frame-by-frame and yet the size and timing was effective at making the impact feel as powerful as it did. The most immediate comparison was to a sequence in episode 23 of One Piece animated by Hideaki Maniwa, whose tendency to liberally have effects be on 1s the way he did made his work a treat to watch in the first couple-hundred episodes of the series.

That was a lot to cover regarding the main party fighting against Cordovin and yet that was only the first-half of the episode. There is still the latter half that focuses on Blake and Yang each having their go against Adam Taurus and indeed is their a lot to unpack. As stated earlier, three storyboard artists were tasked with this episode, one of which being Rachel Doda who handled the former fight. Here, Kevin Harger takes over a great portion and this was actually somewhat confirmed since over a week the episode premiered. Back in episode 9 of season 2 CRWBY - Behind the Episode, insight was given about the motion capture process and in it, footage was accidentally shown of the storyboards for this episode that ended up being leaked on certain corners of the internet. This was of course a blunder and currently the boards have been blurred out ever since. But since the episode proper has become publicly available, now is a apt time to talk about them. The drawings within boards match that of previous storyboards confirmed to have been done by Kevin such as in the Yang character short, the Gods of Light and Darkness confronting each other, Oscar vs Leo and Ozpin vs Hazel, as well as some of his drawings outside of RWBY in general.

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With all of that confirmation in mind, this is a good opportunity to briefly study on Kevin’s techniques with doing storyboards. Of course, this is all observation and storyboard artists tend to work closely with Kerry to go over what is the best way to depict action sequences, so take what will be said with a grain of salt. Although it’s not much, there are two traits to assess from Kevin Harger’s storyboards. First is that scenes he’s involved in tend to display a shot where two characters briefly stare at one another or at least one stares at the other in a brief standoff before the fight proceeds. This can be seen in some of the previously mentioned examples. Second, any character that is seen as having the advantage will be framed in a shot or two as being above the other in height. This will naturally apply to taller characters like Hazel and the Ursa Grimm but is not limited to them as Ozpin when he took possession of Oscar’s body is framed similarly in one shot. The third and final observation is that in a given sequence, one character may be seen dodging and maneuvering either around or somewhat away from his/her opponent as seen with Yang and Ozpin.

The reason any of this matters is because for fight scenes, the storyboards help determine the choreography and shot composition just as much as the animation. In fact, depending on how much the animators want to stick closely with them, the boards can determine the choreography even more so. This is something that fan-favorite animator of RWBY, Kim Newman. expressed when talking about animating the Yang character short at the Just the Fights Panel at RTX Austin 2018. stating how important storyboards are and they have helped saved her time and stress. Going back to the Blake vs Adam fight, the observations made earlier about Kevin’s previous storyboards can be seen here such as Adam being framed as bigger than Blake and the two characters in a brief standoff. Also, every action and reaction the characters communicate through their movements and the emotions in Kevin’s boards can serve as great fuel for the team of animators assigned to the fight once they see the animatic. Another possible way of getting the animators psyched up for the fight in this episode and perhaps even Kevin when having done the storyboards would be knowing that Blake intends to dual-wield. As unusual of a source this is, on March 15th, 2018, Kerry Shawcross confirmed to a fan named Casualdoom12 via the live chat of of a stream of RWBY volume 5 in regards to whether or not Blake would dual wield in the future by simply saying, “yeah.” Many fans have accused Kerry and Miles of forgetting how certain characters fight until they suddenly remember to. But sources have strongly argued otherwise, such as with Qrow and the scythe mode of his weapon, Harbinger according to the volume 3 blu-ray directors audio commentary track with his fight against Winter:

Miles: “It was your idea by the way to have the transformation start and stop as the ultimate cock tease.”

Miles: “To this day, I’m still seeing comments, “WHEN ARE WE GONNA SEE THE SCYTHE?!” It was, I loved it. It was great.”

Kerry: “We just kinda wanted to mess with people.”

Miles: “Y-you and me?”

Kerry: “Nooo, naaaah.”

And in the volume 4 blu-ray directors commentary track with his fight against Tyrian:

Kerry: “So uh, a lot of people wondered why he never went into scythe mode during the fight. We actually talked about that for a really, really good amount. And really what it comes down to is it’s just not, it doesn’t seem like it would be fast enough.”

Miles: “Yeah, it’s not gonna do stuff to fight against somebody like Tyrian.”

Kerry: “No, because Tyrian has essentially got like 3-5 points of contact depending on if he’s using his feet or not. And to just try and block them with that giant scythe just didn’t seem like a good idea. So that was why because I know people really want to see him in scythe mode, but we just felt it would feel forced and not make a lot of sense for him.”

Then there was the matter of Velvet deciding to use a hard-light dust version of Penny’s weapon, again in the volume 3 director’s audio commentary:

Miles: “What was the um... what was it like-oh, I think you were the one that had the idea to end with Penny’s swords too.”

Kerry: “Yeah, so we knew like, “okay, we’re gonna have her cycle through a bunch of characters’ weapons. Ya know, we named off the main four, we talked about some other ones and then it came down to the last one and for me, immediately it was like, “it has to be Penny.” Like, there’s no other way to do this.”

Gray: “There was the briefest debate about whether or not Penny herself should be able to show up because technically the weapons are a part of her and vice-versa.”

Kerry: “Yeah.”

Gray: “And it would’ve been a different moment.”

And then in episode 13 of season 1 of RWBY Rewind, Kerry and Miles answered the matter of how aura breaking or flickering works and cited the Ghira vs the Albain twins fight, stating that he did not forget to depict Ghira having his aura already depleted so much as he was more okay with the idea of that instance happening off-screens than viewers would’ve been. Kerry is not absent-minded. He spends a lot of time with Miles contemplating in the writing process over whether a character should a particular thing in a fight, depending on the fight itself and communicates that with the storyboard artists, animators, VFX team and whoever else. Having Blake dual wield when fighting against Adam was no exception as this was meant to be defining point in her character story.

So with the matter of the storyboard artist’s and Kerry’s input into this fight established, who animated it? The team responsible for this latter half are the assistant lead animator, Melanie Stern, Matt Drury, John Yang, Megan Pellino and Joe Vick. These same names have popped up before in the fights for chapters 5 and 7. John had also done much of the fight in chapter 10 and he also handled the first segment with Blake and Adam in the forest as I mentioned previously. Seeing the full version, his portion likely extends right up until Blake and Adam enter the ravine. After that though is where identifying who did what gets a bit tricky. My best assumption would be that what follows up at least up until Blake’s Gambol Shroud is broken is all Melanie Stern. A bit of her camera work and timing feels familiar based on previous fights she worked on. Though if she really did this segment, then this is probably one of the most fast-paced sequences she’s ever animated in a fight scene. Instances such as Blake twirling a bit so that she faces Adam’s gun before using her semblance or parrying Adam’s sword in such a way that it slides across her katana and into the sheath portion of her cleaver are so quick and seamless that one would easily miss those moments if he/she blinked.

Once Blake is down and the katana portion of her Gambol Shroud is broken, things die down briefly as we get some facial expressions and character acting. In the shot with Blake, her expressions easily read that she is aware of and understood how and why Adam got his scar and that a part of her felt sorry for him. In contrast from Blake’s more nuanced expressions though, Adam’s are more explicit and seeing him unmasked definitely brings great synergy between what he emotes and Garret Hunter’s vocal performance. Given that Blake’s expression is subtly different between the end of this cut and the start of the next one, most of this segment and Yang’s dynamic entry with having her bike crash into Adam was all animated by Megan Pellino, the latter of which was definitely confirmed by Melanie. This is actually the first time we learn which part of a fight Megan has done and although it’s not much, the moment itself was bound to satisfy viewers.

Now comes the Yang vs Adam portion and there’s a couple of big things to break down from a production standpoint first. Referring back to episode 9 of CRWBY - Behind the Episode season 2, there was more being implied about what goes on in this fight than just the storyboards. The motion capture actually previewed the standoff portion of the fight before Adam lunges at Yang. It seems that in the session, Melanie Stern was doing mo-cap for Blake, either Nicole LaCroix or Nicole “Nyx” Morciniec did mo-cap for Yang and Matt Drury did mo-cap for Adam. The last one is particularly noteworthy and yet unsurprising since Matt has gone on record to liking Adam’s character and having done mo-cap for him before. On top of that, Matt has been absent in the staff credits since after chapter 7 which is not the first time an animator has been uncredited for whole episodes in a row due to going from being involved in one big scene to being involved in another one later in the volume. This same thing happened with Dillon Gu during volume 3 who went from animating the double rounds fight in chapter 4 to the students vs the Nevermore and Ironwood vs the Alpha Beowulf in chapter 10.

One could argue that he had to dedicate time working on Gen:Lock but given the timing, Matt probably anticipated this moment too much to not want to dedicate as much time for this sequence. Having said that, here’s where where the other piece of behind-the-scenes information comes in. Back in 2016, former co-lead animator Shane Newville publicly posted an open letter about various things regarding RWBY’s production, including during volume 3. I’ll spare the details and the source since his perspective and frustration on things regarding Monty Oum’s vision, while understandable given how dear Monty was to him, is also distasteful when taking insight about volume 3′s production from Kerry, Miles, Gray Haddock, then lead producer, Koen Wooten, and every other staff member’s perspective into account. Rather, I’ll refer to a small quote from his letter about a fight Monty Oum was working on prior to his passing:

“Next up was another scene that I had been looking forward to for a very long time. Blake was meant to fight Adam, and then Yang was suppose to come in and take over the fight, protecting Blake from death. Once I was done with Yang vs Mercury, I asked about this long-anticipated, ultra-badass scene.

But guess what-- they didn’t even write it in the script because they didn’t look at what Monty created for the scene before they began! It was all available to them before Monty passed away and after he was gone I made sure all of those scenes were available to them-- that they had them in their hands. It was even more of a surprise to me since I had rendered out Monty’s timelines for them, at the producer’s request, before production even started. they didn’t even look at what Monty, the creator of the show, made for this show.

Let me add that the Yang vs Adam fight was looking beyond badass. Monty was using a Linkin Park song as the soundtrack to animate it to. I was told that they would just find some other place for it down the road. But I know that when they eventually make the switch to Maya, everything Monty and I worked so hard to build up will become unusable and therefore thrown into the garbage.”

Tonal choice aside, much of what Shane stated is very likely the case when examining the unfinished footage that suddenly surfaced around the same time as RTX Austin back in August 2018 according to reddit user JauneBlackSmudge. Even the temp music for the sequence is from the Linkin Park song, “Session”. It is unclear whether Shane himself uploaded the footage or someone else anonymously did and it’s currently unconfirmed whether Kerry Shawcross himself had possession of the footage and wanted to reserve it. Regardless, it’s clear that snippets of it were directly referenced and adapted into the Yang vs Adam fight seen in volume 6. Even Shane’s claim about Kerry finding another place for this fight somewhere down the road would support past cases where Kerry has talked about usually pushing ideas out of the script or production of one volume and reserving them for another one. Rarely ever does an idea get scrapped altogether and never use it with a couple of exceptions such as dust-powered cars according to art director, Patrick Rodriguez and the double-rounds fight between Pyrrha, Nora, Sun and Neptune which had to be cut or else there would be too much of a strain on volume 3′s production scheduling.

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But enough of the behind-the-scenes and on to analyzing the fight itself which is nothing short of exhilarating. As stated, the fight matches snippets of the unfinished clip but has been adapted with more nuance depending on the camera angles and gestures. Case in point, Adam in the unfinished clip throws a slicing boomerang-like wave while the official scene has Adam using his sword like a buzz-saw. It’s also worth noting that when Adam is in the air, his form is very similar to that of when he kicked his sword at the Atlessian Knight in the Adam Character short which was a sequence Matt Drury animated. I previously compared that moment to Ken’Ichi Fujisawa’s sequence on episode 385 of Naruto Shippuden in the Adam Character Short Analysis, it was more likely a direct homage to a sequence done by animator Spencer Wan in the Netflix animated series, Castlevania. Once Yang is done blocking, she briefly dashes in with an upper-body boxer stance and starts a series of counterattacks. Like the Cordovin mech fight, the visual effects greatly compliment the motion by having certain strikes and blows be in the form of arcs. One of my favorite moments in this sequence is how the rapid-fire punches against Adam’s sword have duplicates of Yang’s arms to implement a blinding speed to them. This may possibly be due to having a copy of the same model blend in to give off that multi-arm illusion. Animator Harley Dwortz was actually the first in the animation team to use this technique way back in chapters 4 and 7 of volume 2 when Neptune was on Yang’s bike and Ruby was given pulled in by Yang. Next is another moment adapted from the unused Yang vs Adam footage where Adam runs around with afterimages and then sends a wave of energy at her. Though like previously, certain nuances are added like Yang’s close-up reaction shot to Adam’s direction and the same effects used in the last chapter against Blake where black and red accented lighting is utilized around him. Also, it seems like the wave itself was drawn in 2-D by Myke Chapman.

After a quick pause in-between, we get to the next sequence where Yang lunges right back and then dodges Adam’s strike to the side in mid-air and then spins herself to get a stronger kick at him. The mid-air dodge actually resembles a sequence from My Hero Academia and it wouldn’t be a stretch if what Yang did was inspired by that either since Kevin Harger mentioned using Bakugo as inspiration for having Yang maneuver mid-air in his storyboards for the Yang Character Short. At any rate, what happens next is that when Adam swings his sword again, Yang shoots to propel herself back but because of how instantaneous it is, it’s easy for the viewer eyes and brain to not register that in normal speed. Then comes another one of my favorite parts about this fight where Yang runs forward but she’s still sliding back a bit due to not immediately having the momentum. Then comes a few punches and some kicks interestingly similar to when Mercury attacked Pyrrha in their sparring match in volume 2. Finally, Adam knocks Yang back with his sword and I love how there are a couple of bounces on her fall before lying on the ground. I suspect that Joe Vick did this sequence who has not been explicit about which cuts he did in any of the sequences he has been involved in this volume. The reason it might him though is due to comparing the timing of the animation here to that of one of Joe’s demo reels where a martial artist character strikes at a sandbag in various ways. The animation in both the reel and this portion of the fight share the similar timing, especially compared to the previous sequence which feels a tad harsher and faster though the overall kinetic energy is not lost in what is presumed to be Joe’s portion.

Then comes the moment that caps off the action segment of the latter-half of the episode. Again, having Adam unmasked does wonders for his more explicit expressions as his pupils are shrunken and expresses ferocity. This is followed by Blake’s cat ears reacting to the sound of Adam’s weapon and his growl, which have been a key component in the action as shown earlier. Then we get the best effects in the fight where Adam is once again shrouded completely in black along with the entire screen this time, minus the red accents on him glowing. I just love how the more powerful his attacks seem to be the darker the screen gets, whether or not that was intentional on the compositing team’s part. Complimented with more black and red sparks, what follows is the icing of the cake with the blast shaped in such an extremely monstrous form. These are the kind of effects that anime fans within the Sakuga community become very fond over between individual animators and although this case is more likely from the visual effects, that does not make the spectacle any less pleasing to see. Then comes a few shots of Yang withstanding the attack and I would be remiss to not mention the fact that yes, the shot composition matches that of the climax in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. Given that Blake and Adam and somewhat Yang are inspired by the fairy tale of the same name, it would not be absurd to presume that either Kevin Harger or Kerry Shawcross used such shots as a purposeful homage. In the last several shots, we get more of Adam’s expressions that sell his manipulative nature as well as some nice shot composition in the midst of the standoff. Since Adam is focused on Yang, they are both framed in front of the cliffs while Blake is in front of the waterfall. But when Blake’s reaches to hold Yang’s hand, the latter is framed having crossed from the waterfall to the cliffs behind her, thus marking the end of the episode.

Ooh boy, what an episode to break down! A lot happened in both halves of this episode that required more dissecting than the average analysis, especially the latter part. Hopefully, this proved to be an insightful read. Since neither fight concluded this episode, there is obviously more to anticipate and this time things are being teased by Neath Oum, Monty’s brother and the voice of Ren of all people. Once these bigger things come in supposedly more ways than one int he next episode, there will of course be more to analyze about the production.

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whatdoesshedotothem · 3 years ago

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Monday 2 July 1832

6 40

11 25

fine morning F71° at 7 ¼ - out at 8 ¼ - went to Pickersgills’ – found the workmen at work – then sauntered about along the top of Bairstow thro’ the Cunnery wood by the Cunnery and Pickersgills’ home – my father began mowing today – began with upper cunnery – found Benjamin Bottomley and a man of the name of Harger waiting to speak to me – begged that whatever Benjamin had to say to me might be given to me in writing – that I should shew it to my attorney and do as the law directed – I was surprised and sorry that Benjamin had acted as he had done – not more than a minute or 2 saying this and walked off to my breakfast with my aunt at 10 ½ - came to my room at 11 ½ - copying out letters to my business letter book, and wrote and sent by John at 1 40 note to ‘Mr. Whitley, Windinghill Lane, Halifax’ to say I thought the pew he has of me in the old church, ought to be £2. in answer to his note of the 29th ultimo to Mr. James Briggs or my father and sent up here on Saturday to say he Mr. W- thought the pews not worth so much as when he 1st took his at 1.11.6 and if the rent was not reduced to this he would give it up – Kirton came before 2 – have just been down to him – he came to complain of the damage done by the great flood about 3 weeks ago, and perhaps chiefly to say if I did not lower the rent he must quit the farm – to this I very quietly answered – that he must give me a regular notice, and, at any rate, we would part good friends, for I should be very sorry to lose him – adding that, had I known this, I certainly should not have done as I did when I saw him last – i.e. give him £12 for tillage – no! but said he, it is in the land – I see I shall have plenty to do with them all – in about an hour or less (till 3 5) wrote 3 pages to IN- knew not ½ my troubles when my letter when on Tuesday morning to her mother - my aunt determined to let me have our goodnight had not told me of my steward’s being ill and his life despaired of - say what a loss he will be - particularly at this time when all sorts of concerns are unsettled - if CN- does not hear from me before their journey ‘on the subject we talked at breakfast just before leaving you’ (will-making) ‘she really must excuse me - at all rates, she may be always sure I will do anything in the world I can and with much more pleasure than I should do it for most other people’ - mention M-‘s sudden journey to York and sleeping here on Wednesday - looking much better in better spirits than when I saw her at Lawton. Did Mrs N- go to Scarbro’ - to write and tell me the Langton news – ‘Dupin will make a good president of the council - he has always been for excluding majesty from assisting at their meetings and has a strong party with him in favour of this’ - the king (Louis Philippe) was said not to like him much on this account – if Talley-rand has made up these matters, surely has done a good job, and the bet is better than it was’ - ‘this thought the radicals will bring in Stocks and the Tories Wortley (James Stuart) – out at 3 ¾ - went to Pickersgills’ – staid with the workmen till after 6 – then sauntered about – came in at 6 40 dinner at 6 50 – Brook came that a very civil man lived in the cottage at Pickersgills’, late Benjamin Bottomleys’ – gave him ½ years rent, as agreed by Mr. Briggs, for leaving the cottage Benjamin not having given him notice – sat talking a little to my aunt – out in my walk for an hour till 9 ½ - came to my room at 10 5 – very fine day and F71 ½° now at 11 ¾ p.m. – doing my clothes for the wash -

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unsurpriisingly · 4 years ago

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Thegymguides Describe the Benefits to keeping fit and healthy

Lowers your alzheimer's disease danger

Over the years, research studies have actually found that keeping active can easily boost thoughts feature and electricity, decreasing the threat of dementia. Exercising can improve intellectual function in healthy seniors, as well as potentially lessens the risk of building cognitive impairment. Dance courses specifically, which call for discovering skills like mind and also focus, are actually especially handy for individuals with an increased danger of Alzheimer's health condition. Thegymguides use you finest manual regarding gym and also fitness for males and female.

Decreases your weakening of bones risk

Health and fitness, particularly load-bearing workout, is necessary for bone health, according to Marlow Personal Trainer Max Harger. "Exercise may be some of one of the most significant traits you can possibly do to avoid weakening of bones, protect on your own from falls and also aid keep bone mass," He claims enhancing workouts like weight-lifting, running, exploring, stair ascending, measure aerobics, dancing and racquet sporting activities are most ideal.

Improves your sexual life

Routine physical exercise can easily assist raise your sexual drive. The brain generates endorphins that induce the release of sex hormonal agents when you exercise. These bodily hormones minimize your cardiovascular system rate, enhance food digestion, reduced blood pressure and also cortisol amounts and rest the body.

Prevents muscle loss

As we grow older, certainly not simply do our physical bodies create muscle less successfully, yet the muscle we actually have break more quickly. This makes routine workout an important part of well-balanced growing old. Exercise not simply helps us sustain our muscular tissue mass, it may improve it. This inevitably maintains our metabolism high, provides us strength as well as endurance to accomplish duties of day-to-day lifestyle, as well as aids avoid drops, which could be a life-altering experience for more mature grownups. Thegymguides is the ideal internet site for you if you need to have to build powerful b body. Within this site, you can easily locate ideal resource regarding health club as well as health and fitness.

Physical exercise assists the digestive muscular tissues break down food items and relocate via your body accurately through reinforcing the abdominal muscles as well as reducing slowness.

Lessens anxiousness, clinical depression and also tension.

We have actually been actually hearing for a long times that routine activity boosts your state of mind, yet it does a lot more than that. Neurotransmitters as well as endorphins that relieve depression are actually discharged when you exercise. And also, you increase your physical body temperature, which has actually been actually shown to calm nerves.

Lowers cancer risk

Numerous studies have actually verified that the risk of colon, bronchi and also boob cancers cells may be significantly reduced in regularly active individuals. In reality, a research discovered that workout is a vital measure to preventing breast cancer cells considering that greater levels of oestrogen rise your danger.

Boosts your skin layer

If narcissism is actually still your number-one inspiration to train, after that add beautiful skin to the checklist of perks. For something, exercise improves the blood flow to your skin. Research studies have actually additionally shown that workout strengthens acne through regulating the manufacturing of acne-inducing testosterone bodily hormones like DHEA and also DHT. And also, sweating may unblock pores as well as aid clean up your breakouts-- essentially purifying the skin layer of oils as well as gunk.

Enriches psychological performance as well as work efficiency

We are an organization believer that exercise is very important for strengthening overall lifestyle, especially when it comes to work. Not just does workout boost positive self-image in the place of work, which helps you tackle management functions and do much better, yet it also improves general performance and also emphasis.

Find a brand new group of buddies

Belonging to exercise can also be fantastic for improving your group of buddies. Meeting people like you with common objectives will certainly not simply boost your socializing however will definitely additionally assist keep you inspired on your fitness journey.

#Fit And Healthy

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pcisleyhightopp-blog · 8 years ago

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🍼

- about:

McKenzie “Mickey” and Caden Heather || 12 and 7 years old || Jock and Art Geek

- likes / dislikes:

McKenzie Heather, or Mickey as the whole family calls her, has always had a deep passion for sports. Like her father, she just belonged out on the field although where he played football, Mickey dabbles mostly with soccer and softball. The latter is by far her favorite of the two but she’s unable to truly give up soccer in order to put all her focus into softball. Even though she detests it at moments, there’s something about it that she can’t let go of. Maybe its the pride her father shows when he tells people she’s the star of not only one team but two. Maybe its the fact that her mother shows up to every single game and Mickey loves to brag about how cool her parents are. Whatever the case, she’s sticking with both sports for now.

McKenzie Heather hates when people pick on her little brother. When they call him names or pick on his clothes, it turns her into Hulk Junior. She’s gotten in a handful of fights in order to protect her baby brother and her parents aren’t exactly upset over it. Evelyn and Jamie both believe in protecting the ones you love no matter the cost and maybe they’re setting a bad example but they’re proud of their daughter for standing up for her family. Even if it means she gets suspended here and there. She’s learning to control her temper and use her words but its a very slow and tedious process.

Caden Heather loves show tunes. Yes. The son of the two people who prided themselves on not doing anything weird or acting out of the realm of ‘normal’ when they were in school loves show tunes and he doesn’t care who knows it. Having both of his parents bold personality, never shying away from the spotlight, he’ll sing his little heart out even if it means the bullies will come after him. (What should he care anyway? His big sister always manages to knock ‘em upside the head real good.) Caden is proud of who he is and no one can tell him to change. Not even his own family.

Caden hates being called gay. At only 7 years old, even he knows it’s not right to bully someone over sexual orientation. Especially since he’s only 7 and the thought of dating anyone grosses him out! He’s at the age where even seeing his parents kiss gives him the willies. Caden thinks its incredibly rude of people to just assume something about him. Even more so when that part of him is something he isn’t even ready to explore or talk about yet. He’s still a kid! Why does he have to start falling for people so quickly? Can’t he live!?

- appearance:

Mickey stands at about 4′8″ and has a slim muscular build from most of her days spent playing sports. She dresses in a variety of clothing but you can usually find her in one of her dads old football sweatshirts and some jeans paired with chucks.

Caden stands at about 3′5″ and is sort of scrawny. He loves wearing polo shirts or flannel and likes to call his style a ‘chic’ look.

- which parent they look more like:

Both look more like Jamie than Evelyn

- which parent they like more:

Mickey is a daddy’s girl and Jamie loves it. In fact, his daughter is the only other girl in the world that he’d say ‘I love you’ too without feeling like he was going to throw up from the words. Mickey is always going on adventures with her father and considers him her best friend. The two of them often think incredibly alike and Evie thinks thats sort of adorable next to it being creepy. She knew when she had kids that one of them would turn out like their dad but she never expected their daughter to be the spitting image of him. The only place they differed was the fact that Mickey was incredibly kind on the outside to others even if she hated a person. She learned that from her mother.

Caden is a mommas boy only because he feels like his father doesn’t truly want him. The boy knows he’s different and often wonders if his relationship with his dad would be different if he was more like his sister. Caden has always wanted Jamie’s approval but he feels like it isn’t even worth trying for. Evelyn tries to talk to her son about the fact that his father wouldn’t trade him in for anything but the boy can’t help but think differently. So, he stays by his mom as much as he can.

- faceclaim:

McKenzie “Mickey” - Annie Leblanc

Caden - Elias Harger

#( ship; the bonnie to my clyde )#( ask )#j-heather

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foursprouthappiness-blog · 7 years ago

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Gary Ridgway: The Green River Killer

New Post has been published on http://foursprout.com/happiness/gary-ridgway-the-green-river-killer/

Gary Ridgway: The Green River Killer

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Biography: Who Was The Green River Killer?

Gary Leon Ridgway was born in 1949 in Salt Lake City, Utah. According to relatives, he came from a troubled home where his parents had frequent violent arguments. His mother was said to be overbearing. His father, a bus driver, frequently complained about prostitutes in his city.

Ridgway wet his bed until age 13. His mother would allegedly wash his genitals after every bed-wetting episode, which instilled him with warring feelings of hatred and sexual desire for his mother. He claimed later that he often fantasized about killing her. Like many other serial killers, he was known for setting fires and torturing animals.

At age 16 he committed his first serious violent act when he led a six-yeads-old boy into the woods and stabbed him in his liver. He later said he did it because he wanted to see what it felt like to kill somebody.

Like his father, Ridgway developed an intense hatred for prostitutes, despite the fact that he frequently used their services. A fanatical Christian who was said to cry after church sermons and Bible readings, Ridgway simultaneously saw sex workers as sinful, but this didn’t stop him from not only having sex with them, but with violating the biblical admonition “Thou shalt not kill.”

After his conviction, Ridgway boasted that he’d made a “career” out of murdering young women. He confessed why he preyed upon sex workers: “I picked prostitutes as my victims because I hate most prostitutes and I did not want to pay them for sex.”

Ridgway goes on why he liked to kill prostitutes: “I knew prostitutes would not be reported missing right away and might never be reported missing. I would talk to her…and get her mind off of the, sex, anything she was nervous about. And think, you know, she thinks, ‘Oh, this guy cares‘…which I didn’t. I just want to, uh, get her in the vehicle and eventually kill her.”

Gary Ridgway’s Wife — Judith Ridgway

Gary Ridgway was married to Judith Ridgway. In the interview above, Judith describes her life with Gary as normal and filled with love. When Gary Ridgway was arrested, his wife Judith was completely and 100% stunned to discover Gary was a serial killer and never believed he was capable of violently murdering so many people. Today she refuses to talk to him and has never visited him in prison.

The Green River Killer and His Methods of Murder

In 1982 a man rafting in the Green River near Seattle made a shocking discovery: He found three dead bodies floating in the river within thirty feet of one another. After he contacted police, an investigation was launched. They had all died of strangulation. All three of them had rocks placed within their vaginas to make them sink in the water. Within six months, a total of six corpses of young females, all of them known prostitutes or runaways, had been found in the Green River.

Police knew they had a serial killer on their hands. He was dubbed “The Green River Killer.”

Thus began an investigation that would last around a decade, cost taxpayers an estimated $15 million, and would yield no killer.

Ridgway preyed upon prostitutes who worked along the Sea-Tac strip between Seattle and Tacoma near the airport. He would win their confidence by showing them a picture of his son, figuring it would make him appear safe.

At first he tended to strangle them them to death with his hands after violently raping them from behind, later moving on to ligatures as a strangulation technique because he found it easier and less messy. After initially dumping their bodies in the river, he switched to disposing of their corpses in forested and abandoned places. Since, according to an FBI profiler, he viewed his victims as “human garbage,” he would dump their bodies in wooded and overgrown areas near the murder scene, often returning to have sex with their corpses. According to Ridgway: “I killed some of them outside. I remember leaving each woman’s body in the place where she was found. I killed most of them in my house near Military Road, and I killed a lot of them in my truck not far from where I picked them up.”

Green River Killer Investigation And Capture

In 1982 after the original discovery of the bodies found in the Green River, Washington police began an investigation that would last nine years, cost $15 million, and yield no killer.

Frighteningly, Ridgway had been arrested in 1982 on prostitution-related charges and became a suspect in the Green River killings the next year. In 1984 he was administered a polygraph test that he was thought to have passed, but a later investigation found that due to police negligence, Ridgway had actually failed the lie detector—and if he’d been arrested and convicted then, at least half of his murder victims would have been spared. In 1987 police again apprehended Ridgway and took hair samples from him but failed to connect him to the serial murders.

Much of the nine-year investigation was a textbook case in bungling. In 1984 a pair of cellmates in San Francisco confessed to the killings, but it turned out to be a hoax. Other suspects came and went but were all eventually cleared. As the police continued to bungle the case, the bodies continued to pile up.

Fascinatingly, infamous serial killer Ted Bundy offered his help in finding the killer. He told investigators that the killer likely knew his victims and that he also probably returned to his dumping sites to have sex with the bodies. He also suggested that the killer’s dumping sites were close to his home.

But by 1991, what was once a formidable statewide task force had withered down to a single investigator. The case had grown cold.

It wasn’t until a decade later that, aided by DNA technology, police revitalized the investigation and put more than 30 people on the case. Semen samples from the first three victims found in the Green River were sent to a lab. They matched with DNA samples that had been taken from Gary Ridgway’s hair in 1987. On November 30, 2001, Gary Ridgway was arrested after leaving work at a truck factory in Renton, WA.

Interview with Serial Killer Gary Ridgway

Fifteen-minute interview with Ridgway from behind bars where he sullenly and dispassionately discusses his record-setting string of murders.

Green River Killer Trial

Ridgway was originally tried on only seven murders because prosecutors were only confident they could achieve convictions in those cases.

In an extremely controversial decision, the District Attorney allowed Ridgway to avoid the death penalty and plea-bargain to life imprisonment if he agreed to confess to an additional 41 murders. King County Prosecuting Attorney Norm Maleng explained that the decision was for the benefit of the families of the other 41 victims:

“We could have gone forward with seven counts, but that is all we could have ever hoped to solve. At the end of that trial, whatever the outcome, there would have been lingering doubts about the rest of these crimes. This agreement was the avenue to the truth. And in the end, the search for the truth is still why we have a criminal justice system…Gary Ridgway does not deserve our mercy. He does not deserve to live. The mercy provided by today’s resolution is directed not at Ridgway, but toward the families who have suffered so much.” — Norm Maleng

Ridgway’s plea bargain included a conviction for a 49th murder, this of an unidentified victim, bringing his total to 49 and making him the most prolific serial killer in American history. Forget about Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy and Richard Ramirez and Jeffrey Dahmer, many of whom were admittedly more brutal in their tactics than Ridgway—when it comes to the body count, no one killed more than the Green River Killer.

Watch Gary Ridgway cry and confess in court

During the trial as a series of victims’ family members came forth to condemn Ridgway, one older man told him that even though it was difficult, he forgave him as God told him to do. It was at this point that the normally stone-faced Ridgway began crying.

In December 2003, a judge sentenced Ridgway to 48 life sentences with no possibility of parole and basic life sentenced, all to be served consecutively. He received an additional 480 years in sentences due to the fact that he tampered with evidence.

In an unexpectedly poignant twist, Ridgway’s third wife, Judith Mawson, described him as a sweet and loving man. She had married him in 1985 after he’d committed most of his killings. Of Ridgway’s 49 victims, he only killed three after meeting Mawson. She told a reporter, “I feel I have saved lives…by being his wife and making him happy.”

Mawson described her infamous ex-husband as a good provider and a sensitive man. She had such a positive opinion that at first she didn’t believe he was capable of murdering anyone. She eventually helped write a book about Ridgway that she dedicated to “those who have had their futures stolen by deceitful lovers.”

TV reporter Charlie Harger echoed Mawson’s sentiments and described Ridgway as unsettlingly normal: “The strange thing about Gary Ridgway is if you didn’t know the depravity, if you didn’t know the evil that this man committed, you would have no clue when you talked on the phone with him. This man sounds like he would be a perfect neighbor.”

Gary Ridgway Pleads Guilty to 49th Murder

Courtroom footage of Ridgway finally confessing to the murder of a woman whose family had been plagued by uncertainty for three decades after slaying.

Gary Ridgway’s Life In Prison

After his conviction, Ridgway lived in “virtual isolation” at the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla. Many privileges common to prisoners were denied him due to his notoriety and the risk of being murdered by other inmates.

In May 2015 he was transferred to a maximum-security federal prison in Florence, CO, where he was less recognizable to inmates. In Colorado, Ridgway is less isolated and has more freedom to move among the general population.

Former King County Sheriff Dave Reichart, who helmed the Green River Task Force, called the decision to move Ridgway—which cost nearly $20,000 for the private plane used to transfer him—“unbelievable and absolutely intolerable…Ridgway should feel fortunate to spend the remainder of his life in solitary confinement.”

Due to the public outcry about Ridgway’s new privilege and relatively easier confinement, he was moved back to Walla Walla in October 2016.

90 The Victims of Gary Ridgway

Documentary about Ridgway’s victims that includes all the confirmed murders as well as speculation that he may have killed as many as 90 women.The following is a list of the 49 victims Gary Ridgway was convicted of murdering, making him the most prolific serial killer in American history.

Wendy Lee Coffield, 16, body found July 15, 1982

Gisele Ann Lovvorn, 17, body found September 25, 1982

Debra Lynn Bonner, 23, body found August 12, 1982

Marcia Fay Chapman, 31, body found August 15, 1982

Cynthia Jean Hinds, 17, body found August 15, 1982

Opal Charmaine Mills, 16, body found August 15, 1982

Terry Rene Milligan, 16, body found April 1, 1984

Mary Bridget Meehan, 18, body found November 13, 1983

Debra Lorraine Estes, 15, body found May 30, 1988

Linda Jane Rule, 16, body found January 31, 1983

Denise Darcel Bush, 23, body found June 12, 1985

Shawnda Leea Summers, 16, body found August 11, 1983

Shirley Marie Sherrill, 18, body found June 14, 1985

Rebecca “Becky” Marrero, 20, body found December 21, 2010

Colleen Renee Brockman, 15, body found May 26, 1984

Sandra Denise Major, 20, body found December 30, 1985

Alma Ann Smith, 18, body found April 2, 1984

Delores LaVerne Williams, 17, body found March 31, 1984

Gail Lynn Mathews, 23, body found September 18, 1983

Andrea M. Childers, 19, body found October 11, 1989

Sandra Kay Gabbert, 17, body found April 1, 1984

Kimi-Kai Pitsor, 16, body found December 15, 1983

Marie M. Malvar, 18, body found September 26, 2003

Carol Ann Christensen, 21, body found May 8, 1983

Martina Theresa Authorlee, 18, body found November 14, 1984

Cheryl Lee Wims, 18, body found March 22, 1984

Yvonne “Shelly” Antosh, 19, body found October 15, 1983

Carrie Ann Rois, 15, body found March 10, 1985

Constance Elizabeth Naon, 19, body found October 27, 1983

Kelly Marie Ware, 22, body found October 29, 1983

Tina Marie Thompson, 21, body found April 20, 1984

April Dawn Buttram, 16, body found August 30, 2003

Debbie May Abernathy, 26, body found March 31, 1984

Tracy Ann Winston, 19, body found March 27, 1986

Maureen Sue Feeney, 19, body found May 2, 1986

Mary Sue Bello, 25, body found October 12, 1984

Pammy Annette Avent, 15, body found August 16, 2003

Delise Louise Plager, 22, body found February 14, 1984

Kimberly L. Nelson, 21, body found June 14, 1986

Lisa Yates, 19, body found March 13, 1984

Mary Exzetta West, 16, body found September 8, 1985

Cindy Anne Smith, 17, body found June 27, 1987

Patricia Michelle Barczak, 19, body found February 3, 1993

Roberta Joseph Hayes, 21, body found September 11, 1991

Marta Reeves, 36, body found September 20, 1990

Patricia Yellowrobe, 38, body found August 6, 1998

Unidentified White Female (Jane Doe B-10), 12–18, body found March 21, 1984

Unidentified White Female (Jane Doe B-17), 14–18, body found January 2, 1986

Unidentified Female (Jane Doe B-20), 13–24, body found August 21, 2003

Suspected but unconfirmed victims:

Tammy Vincent, 17, disappeared August 1979

Amina Agisheff, 35, disappeared July 7, 1982

Kase Ann Lee (née Woods), 16, disappeared August 28, 1982

Tammie Liles, 16, disappeared June 9, 1983

Kelly Kay McGinniss, 18, disappeared June 28, 1983

Angela Marie Girdner, 16, disappeared July 1983

Patricia Osborn, 19, disappeared October 20, 1983

Martha Morrison, 17, disappeared September 1, 1974

Unidentified Black Female, Unknown, disappeared December 1980

Kristi Lynn Vorak, 13, disappeared October 31, 1982

Patricia Ann Leblanc, 15, disappeared August 12, 1983

Rose Marie Kurran, 16, disappeared August 26, 1987

Darci Warde, 16, disappeared April 24, 1990

Cora McGuirk, 22, disappeared July 12, 1991

The Capture of the Green River Killer

Nearly five-hour fictionalized drama based on the sordid details and eventual capture and conviction of the man who is confirmed to have murdered more people than anyone else in American history.

#Happiness

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helloworlddemo1122-yahoopar-blog · 7 years ago

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Lauren Akins, Thomas Rhett's Wife, Launches Jewelry Partnership to Support Communities in Uganda (Exclusive)

Lauren Akins continues to give back.

The 28-year-old philanthropist, mother and wife of country star Thomas Rhett has joined forces with Nashville-based fine jewelry designer Emily Dee to launch the Lauren Akins X Ladybird line, offering delicate charm necklaces in support of Love One International's charitable efforts in Uganda. The East African nation holds a special place in the Akins family's hearts, as it's where daughter Willa Gray was born.

Each dainty necklace -- offered in white, rose and yellow gold, with diamond encrusted options, as well as sterling silver -- holds three charms representing the mantra "Love +1" and is built to withstand the wear and tear of every day. Prices on the high-quality collection range from $99 to $749.

Nicola Harger

"I wanted to design something well-made," Akins tells ET exclusively. "I'm really bad about taking my jewelry off, so it's got to be something that can get wet. It's got to be something that can withstand two toddlers all day."

The Love One International nonprofit, for which Akins is a board member, was built from founder Suzanne Mayernick’s work with 147 Million Orphans. Focused on better serving the communities of Uganda, Love One's mission is to provide malnourished children with food, water, education and medical treatment while empowering parents, helping to rebuild families and develop sustainable homes.

"It's so hard when you look at the world as a whole and kids in the world, you want to help them all," Akins says. "You wish everybody was happy, you wish nobody had a rough life or had to grow up without something."

"The reality is, the thought of wrapping your brain around helping every child in the world seems impossible," she continues, "but loving one is not. Everybody can love just one, or just love the one in front of you, whatever loving them looks like. I really think that people can change the world if you love the one in front of you."

Happy Easter from the Akins to y’all-here are some of the many photos we took in a parking lot after church trying to get ONE with us all looking at the camera hahah 🙌🙏 Our King is risen and that’s a BIG reason to be joyful (and take a family photo😘) He has conquered our world, thank you Jesus 💛💛💛

A post shared by Lauren Akins (@laur_akins) on Apr 1, 2018 at 1:34pm PDT

Akins first became involved with mission work in the fall of 2015, around the same time that her husband released his sophomore album, Tangled Up. Her first trip was to Haiti.

"I'd never been out of the country, really," Akins recalls. "Certainly not a third world country on missions. I'd always wanted to, but I didn't really envision me doing it with total strangers for the first time when my husband's album was coming out."

In the end, it was the "Die a Happy Man" singer who convinced her to take the plunge.

"He was like, 'You need to go. I need you over there praying for me more than I need you here in L.A. and New York' or wherever he was going to be."

It turned out to be the most life-changing decision the couple ever made, helping to establish Akins' identity outside of her role as a supportive wife.

"It was a medical mission trip and it was like somebody had hit me across the face with my mission in the world. It was like, 'Oh my gosh, this is the reason why I'm here,'" she muses.

"I'd been traveling with [Rhett] and it had been so much fun getting to watch him do his passions and live that out, and do it so well. There was always something in me that was like, 'Why did I go to nursing school? There's got to be a reason,'" she continues. "'There's got to be something that comes after all the hard work I've put in, other than just going with my husband wherever.' Although I love it, I needed something that I felt like I was giving back to and getting to use what I'd set out to use initially."

Life Changes with the BEST peeps around (many not pictured) and the BEST fans we could have asked for on the first night of tour! So. Much. Fun🎉 We ❤️ YOU TULSA 😘😘 not to mention like the coolest rockstar artist, band & crew & tour mates around😍🙌 so proud of you babe!! Y’all killed it💪

A post shared by Lauren Akins (@laur_akins) on Apr 5, 2018 at 11:05pm PDT

By the spring of 2016, Akins embarked on another life-changing journey. This time to Uganda, where she would meet the five-month-old baby that would become her daughter.

"When I held her, she just grabbed ahold of my heart and never let go," Akins says of her first contact with Willa Gray. The couple went on to pursue adoption through an agency and welcomed their first daughter home to Nashville in 2017.

Stay tuned for more from ET's exclusive interview with Akins, coming soon to ETonline.com.

RELATED CONTENT:

GRAMMYs 2018: Thomas Rhett Hopes Daughters 'Turn Out Better Than I Did!' (Exclusive)

Thomas Rhett Celebrates Daughter Willa's 2nd Birthday With Awesome Unicorn Party

Thomas Rhett and Wife Lauren Celebrate 5-Year Wedding Anniversary

#_revsp:new_provider_with_logo_342 #_uuid:85b3555e-e45d-3f44-8764-30c55c4c203e #_lmsid:a0VK0000001yfWcMAI

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hypeathon · 6 years ago

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RWBY Volume 6 Adam Character Short - A Shot-by-Shot Analysis

Trailers and shorts in RWBY are very interesting and unique format as far as works of fictional entertainment go. They can be so tricky to describe that even the show’s late creator, Monty Oum himself, admitted he was not entirely sure what to call the pre-volume 1 trailers at the time they were first released. Whatever you or I call them, these small works can serve various purposes for this serialized web-series. On the one hand, they can give a very thorough idea of how the characters being focused on engages in combat through their movements. At the same time, they can also provide a piece of a character’s story, igniting many theories from within the show’s fan base.

How well a short or trailer can convey either of those aspects or any other ones depends greatly on its presentation. This is why I believe the Adam character short sticks out so well.

Before RTX, things were dead-silent as to what the future of RWBY’s main story would entail. So when RTX Austin 2018’s first RWBY panel showed the premiere of the Adam Character Short, word had naturally spread about the implied quality. This extended to a handful of fans learning of a snippet of the short without the post-production polish via a stream of the RT Animation Audio panel (oops). But aside from this, there was only so much to interpret. That is until Friday, August 17th, when the piece had officially been released to the general public. With the Adam short being the longest of any of the previous character shorts yet at a whopping 7 minutes, there is a lot to cover regarding both the animation and the visual presentation.

Speaking personally, this is by far the strongest of all the character shorts by far based on one factor: its visual direction. And there’s a strongly implied reason as to why this is. Back on February 12th, RWBY’s director & writer, Kerry Shawcross and Miles Luna respectively, as well as RWBY Chibi director, Paula Decanini, took part in an “Ask Me Anything” Session over at the RWBY sub-reddit. It was there when Kerry particularly responded to a question about the matter of “show, don’t tell” by stating that was what stuck with him the most. Love it or hate it, volume 5 left many fans with various mixed emotions, including concern for how the show would visually convey its story in future installments. However, between this character short and the announcement at RTX that Connor Pickens, the lead editor for volumes 3-5 of RWBY being promoted to co-director, these were signs how much Kerry took such particular feedback to heart.

Although it’s one thing to state the short itself applied “show, don’t tell”. It’s a whole other thing to elaborate on all the different ways it was utilized and why it matters. Sadly, there’s no confirmation as to who provided the storyboards, another important role in visual direction. In fairness though, who provides boards for the characters shorts are rarely ever stated to the public with one exception being that Kevin Harger did the ones for the Yang short at the “Just the Fights” RTX panel. What can be confirmed though are the animators confirmed to have been involved with the Adam short, as stated by volume 6 animation director, Joel Mann:

Melanie Stern

Matt Drury

Joe Vick

Asha Bishi

Hannah Novotny

Michelle Yi

Erika Soosar

Vince Cappelluti

Just like with the matter of “show, don’t tell”, equal concern has been expressed regarding Gen:Lock’s production have more of an influence at Rooster Teeth Animation, leading to certain fan-favorite animators in RWBY’s production being permanently taken away. However, I have gone on record on how vital it is to acknowledge the merits of both newer and veteran talent since like it or not, the former will have more of a presence in RWBY. The Adam character short is especially noteworthy due to not just the number of animators being double that of past shorts, but five of the eight animators were recruited during volume 5′s production while two were recruited during volume 4′s and Melanie Stern, the assistant lead animator for volume 6, was first brought on during volume 3. This makes things both interesting and complicated, the latter of which has to due with how for some animators, there are little-to-no sources confirming who did what in RWBY thus far. Though certain animators have confirmed or at least implied what sequences they did, making for a good opportunity to examine their skills.

With that said, now is the time to decipher how the Adam short stand outs shot-by-shot and scene-by-scene.

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Scene #1: Outside of the Schnee Dust Company Plant

The biggest thing worth talking about in this scene is how the cinematography is in great effect. When Adam is introduced, we don’t just see his model in plain view first thing. We see a shot of his shadow, then his feet, then his mask, and finally a slow pan up to his face as we are teased with not seeing how he actually looks. With reaction shots of the other faunus characters sandwiched in-between, this captures not just importance in Adam’s character for the short itself, but also to his own kind that look up to him. When fans of RWBY think of cinematography, it’s generally believed to not be capable of more then making things prettier. This completely mis-represents the purpose it serves. Cinematography is more about using elements of camera direction, lighting, staging and timing of each shot to help tell the story within a scene. Camera direction as one element, has played a role into helping convey different characters in RWBY since volume 3, as confirmed by certain people in the show’s storyboard and camera layout departments. Ozpin’s level-headed mindset by having the camera point straightforwardly at him, Ironwood’s display of authority from low-angles, Qrow’s drunk nature through the camera tilting, and Nora’s bundle of energy by having the camera dramatically pan and zoom along with her. Their characters have been further utilized by the camera in varied ways and Adam is no different.

Beyond that, one other aspect of visual direction in both this scene and the short in general is the use of transitions, namely the invisible cut. It’s a fairly common trick used in film-making but it has never used in RWBY outside of chapter 9 of volume 2, nor has it been used as consistently until now. More will be talked about this technique, but the gist as to what it greatly presents is the passage of time for Adam’s story.

Scene #2: The forest skirmish between the White Fang and the Humans

Before going over the next scene, it’s worth quickly addressing the setting. Some fans have speculated that too much time and resources may have been spent on the Adam short which could affect the production of volume 6. However, in terms of the models of the environments, specifically the forest set, it seems similar to the set in chapter 4 of volume 5, albeit with more varied placements of trees and open space and different lighting. The same goes for the set in the next scene with Blake and Adam which may have been from the Blake Character short. Although it’s all speculative, these observations can imply that at least on the modeling team’s end, not too much time was spent on the short.

Moving on to the beginning of the sequence itself, one bit that stands out is Sienna’s ears and the way they move. This is actually something seen a little earlier with the one faunus girl when she sees Adam and it’s noteworthy for three reasons. First, while there’s not a lot of information as to how real life tigers communicate through their ears, it’s possibly similar to how house cats use their ears to express various emotions. This in turn leads to the second noteworthy reason, how it adds depth to what certain faunus characters express at a given moment. It can even be seen with Sienna’s character which, assuming such similarities between tigers and cats are there, indicate that Sienna was feeling defensive and alert in the first shot next to Adam. There will be more moments where the animal ears add to a character’s emotion both from Sienna and Blake later on.

The third and final reason this is all worth bringing up is the matter of who animated the beginning of this scene. One animator in RWBY’s production that has made consciously applied movement to animal ears and tails is Asha Bishi. I’ve mentioned before how her way of moving characters, faunus, human, or Grimm, usually feel snappy and lively which makes character acting her greatest strength. And while the character acting is also strong between Ghira, Adam, Sienna and other minior characters here, I’m not positive it’s her. If I were to take a guess, Hannah Novotny may have animated this sequence. Hannah and Asha were both recruited during volume 4′s production and while both are great at providing expression through the characters they animate, the former is slightly less snappy with her movements based on the confirmed shots she did and thus feel a tad slower. That said, she does provide little touches herself when animating scenes like shrinking and shaking of pupils within the eyes and even movement of animal ears, hence my guess.

In the midst of the skirmish, there’s a brief as a bullet hits the window next to Ghira, it leaves off an neat electricity effect. Jumping ahead to when Ghira gets shot with more electricity and aura effects, we get to the first big action sequence in the short and right as he lands on the ground, I love the look of the small dust that forms. The VFX team have expressed in the past taking inspiration from visual effects seen in anime to help compliment RWBY’s aesthetic. They were already accomplishing that by volume 5 in the Anime Skies Fight and I think they almost perfected it here. We’ve definitely come a long way from the days how smoke and dust use to look like in the show.

We then get a quick rotation shot to show where Adam’s target is and according to Matt Drury, this moment is what he animated. He has gone on record as to how much of a fan he is of Adam’s character to the point where he did motion capture for him in volume 5 and even dyed his hair red, and boy, does it show in how he made Adam fight. Between him dashing, parrying, doing jump-inside kicks, and turning around as he crouches to jump for the tree and use it to spring himself across in rapid succession, Adam rides this balance between being using martial arts and being animalistic. The part where he jumps off the tree is an especially good use of squash and stretch and not an example of bad animation, in case anyone considered that. To get a clearer idea of what does and doesn’t make bad animation, Youtube Anime Ajay provided a very insightful video explaining what is and is not bad animation to respond to a practice commonly made by fans in the anime community.

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Going back to the short, the camera steadily follows Adam barrel-rolling to the far right, leaving some more good-looking anime dust and then sets some nice staging between him and his enemies in front of him as he blocks their attacks. One quick thing to note is how Adam twirls his weapon with the smear effects. The spinning smears throughout this short have invoked some big groans within the fan base and I would be lying if I didn’t have my minor gripes with it. However, the smear effects themselves are not inherently a problem and there are two instances where I believe it works for different reasons. This is one of them. The reason why it works here is through a combination of where the camera moves and zooms and how Adam’s hand moves is seen twirling the weapon. It’s very subtle when playing in normal speed, but it is there. Really, if there’s anything off about the animation is how the spinning just starts without a slow-in and thus feels a little too instantaneous. Though more will be elaborated on this later.

That tangent aside, what I love is how the camera zooms to angle Adam as being seemingly bigger in perspective compared to both characters he’s blocking bullets from. As icing of the cake, you see the shift in facial expressions from the girl on the right with the hoodie as she expresses being intimidated by Adam and ends up anxious for the girl next to her as she looks to her right. After pinning the one girl in the yellow outfit unconscious, we see a brief yet clean combination of smears and sparks as he blocks another bullet and then he dashes to trip the gray-hoodie girl and hit her in mid-air. As nice as it is to see action scenes done at a break-neck pace, having a moment where a character winds-up before performing a certain action can add more impact. What Adam did as he swung his weapon back before gutting the girl was a classic example of anticipatory action, one of the 12 principles. My only criticism regarding this moment was that I wish the moment where the girl was hit lasted a few frames more. Though it helps that in the next shot, we see the facial expressions of the girl who deeply regrets having faced Adam before being knocked back down to the ground. I can’t help but feel sorry for her in particular.

We then cut to Adam going towards another gunman while swiftly dodging bullets and once again using the tree to his advantage before kicking the latter unconscious. With the bright gunshot effects, because they are so close enough to the center of the camera, it helps makes the speed of Adam’s sidesteps feel somewhat blinding. The only slight problem is the smear effect of Adam’s kicks. Similar to the moment where he kicked the gray-hooded human, both use just red for the smears when they could benefit more from using a combination of red and black to consistently follow with the color of his shoes. But in the grand scheme of everything in motion at normal speed, this is all relatively minor. Then we cut to what is either the end of Matt’s sequence or the start of another animator’s. Either way, the faraway wide shot is really great at showing how unstoppable he is while appropriately charging like a bull. The next set of shots that follow a clever way to make the launch of Adam’s sword show how much force it had to make the girl emit such a reaction when being hit in the gut. Then follows the sword twirling in mid-air and here is where I started having issues with the use of smear animations. Though as I said before, more on that later.

Then there’s the human hiding who gives an anxious facial expression before deciding to fire, effectively displaying the fact he is making a split-second choice. Between what came a couple of shots before and what comes next, Hannah Novotny might have animated these parts. Though it’s somewhat of a shot in the dark based on her tweet of doing some action shots. Speaking of darkness, we then see Adam’s signature slash, which the compositing itself is presented slightly differently from the Black trailer. There, it’s timed so that the darkness fades after he absorbs the laser attack. In this character short though, it’s timed so that it disappears after he strikes. It’s different, but it works well here due to how it blackens his body, making him appear as a silhouette while the background fades to near-black and that all disappears once he draws his swords and strikes, making for great impact. It also helps that the way he’s posing with his back facing the camera and his should in front of him makes him more menacing in a manner akin to that one shot of Neferpitou from Hunter x Hunter.

As the human is struck in the next shot, there’s an interesting effect where the pupils in his eyes disappear that feels like something out of the One Piece anime. Just as an aside to talk about the music, I love how it suddenly stops to add to the shocking effect of Adam having brutally killed someone. Next, in the shot where Ghira and Adam look down at the human, we get really clever staging. Not only are they both framed so that only they follow the rule-of-thirds, but your eyes are easily drawn to the remaining humans that appear behind the tree in the far right and then flee. As the scene follows with Sienna defending Adam and calling him a “hero”, Adam makes a surprised reaction that tells a fair bit considering we can’t register his emotions through his eyes. To close the scene, we get the White Fang members cheering as they walk towards Adam, creating another great invisible cut while Sienna and Ghira stare down.

3) Adam and Blake at the rooftops

I mentioned before that there was another scene I believe Asha Bishi animated and Blake and Adam’s scene is it. At first I was only 70-80 percent sure it was her. But this was before Joel Mann confirmed who animated the short. Since then, I’m now 80-90 percent sure. Much of her tells can be identified here, especially with Blake. The various pupil shifts, the slight expanding and wincing of the eyes, and the abundant character acting with their body language and even Blake’s cat ears.

What I especially liked was the end where her hair is flowing in the wind for two reasons. First, it created an opportunity to show that the strands of.. hair, fur maybe, were flowing from her cat ears, something I’ve admittedly never seen before. It’s a small thing, but it showed a neat attention to detail in the modeling. Second, the way her hair flowed and how her fingers seamlessly dug into them is another sign of how we’ve come a long way from the days where hair when being touched or pull around felt more like large clumps than individual strands that could be felt between the fingers.

We are then shown another invisible cut and by far my favorite one of the fall leaves flowing after the wind gets stronger and harsher, indicating that Blake feels a hidden bit of uncertainty by trusting Adam’s words. These invisible cuts have really excelled at presenting the passage of time in Adam’s story and they reminded me a lot of how the anime Haikyuu used a combination of match cuts and invisible cuts to help visually enhance the story of certain characters. Again, I’m very unsure who provided the storyboards for this short and thus the transitions. Though the invisible cuts may be applied by the editing team. Either way, this is how cinematography is displayed in great effect.

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4) Adam, Sienna & Ilia at the White Fang facility

As the short transitions to the second set of action sequences, we are treated to a several-second rotation shot where Sienna flails her chain weapon at her enemies wildly but precisely. Melanie Stern confirmed she animated Sienna fighting and honestly, I had initially thought animator Austin Hardwicke may have done her scenes. So I was pleasantly surprised to be wrong this time. As camera stops to face her, we get more of her cat ears shift, this time to help her confidently stay one step ahead of the Atlesian Knight about to attack her from behind. Next, Sienna uses the mech as a spring board to launch across the hall. Although the camera as she leaps over the Adam and Sienna is zoomed a bit too much and makes the shot feel slightly more claustrophobic than warranted. That being said, moments that follow with Sienna kicking her chain weapon against one mech and then shooting the snapped off arrow-end to the other mech opposite of her are examples of the sequence riding this balance between being chaotic and readable. Sienna delivering her smirk right after also adds a lot to her personality in the limited time we see her fight.

Now would be a good time to quickly talk about the Atlesian knights themselves. First, while seemingly trivial, it’s an interesting attention to detail to have the electricity around them be red as oppose to a more generic yellow or blue to better match their color scheme. Whether that was the VFX or compositing team’s idea is unclear, but it was neat to see regardless. Second, the way we see one of their feet into the camera after the one prior fell is a brief yet smart way to draw focus to the remaining androids. It also helps that between the White Fang being blurred from afar helps stage the distance between them and their opponents. One thing the camera does consistently well in this entire second fight sequence is stage the distance between characters, as we’ll done again shortly. Moving on, Adam blocks more bullets with with some sword spinning smears, though we do get a bit of slow-in and slow-out smears as he as he draws his sword and again before sheathing it. Then get the staging of the previous shot mentioned in effect as Ilia runs ahead with the camera making a nice low-angle shot with some slight rumbling as it trails her.

Once she finishes her attack, it’s Adam’s turn to run ahead and we see a classic case of slicing a few mechs which cuts pause as he sheathes is sword for dramatic effect. This is where Matt’s other animated sequence in the short is presented and a few things are worth highlighting: First, the slash effects quickly fading one-by-one. Second, the way the ends of Adam’s coat flaps down as a follow-through after he pauses. Third, the way the mechs slightly shifted from where they were cut. And fourth, The way the camera tilts to indicate how much damage was in effect. All of these aspects demonstrated how swift and overwhelming Adam’s attacks were. It also helps to given that quick moment of pause. As I said before in the forest skirmish scene, having a time and place to slow down can make for greater impact on a certain action. The same can go for having a character pause before a certain action is performed as demonstrated here.

The scene then proceeds with a sequence of Adam destroying two Atlesian Knights in quick succession. Right away does this moment one-up the previous one in terms of both direction and animation. With the direction, as Adam shoots his sword, we cut to the hilt hitting the first android and with another example of the camera, perfectly staging the set-up and distance of where Adam’s targets are, The sword being shot and bouncing up also easily draws the viewers eyes to where Adam will go next. We then cut to another shot of the sword twirling in mid-air and here is where the smear animation is best presented in the short. In previous cases, the spinning sword lacks the slow-in and slow-in frames. Here, it properly displays the momentum of the sword as it slows down which leads to the next thing Adam does. Hopefully, this settles the matter that the smear being used at all isn’t the problem, nor is it what it’s referencing to. Rather, it’s about how it’s animated which if you look at various anime, there are a myriad of ways to present smears. Back to the sequence, as Adam jumps to the android and off it by shooting its head, he then kicks the sword in mid-air to the other android in a manner similar to animator Ken’ichi Fujisawa did in a fight scene in Naruto Shippuden.

We end Matt’s animated sequence to move on to the next one where the Schnee Dust Company personnel fire across the hall and we get a nice change to red lighting to signify how treacherous things will get for both sides. As Adam, Sienna and Ilia dodge the bullets, we see some good character acting maintained in how they each take cover. Adam using his sword skills to defend himself, Sienna acrobatically staying out of fire and Ilia clumsily back-stepping which makes her inexperience compared to the former two self-evident. Next is more of Sienna’s tiger ear shifts as she and Adam notice the canister creating some anime smoke screen effects, through they’ve been visually filtered a bit. As Adam and Sienna counterattack, the latter climbs up the wall and jumps off which gives a glimpse of how much her weapon resembles a tail. And following that, we get more of her using her chain weapon to flail the gun she lassoed to knock all three of her enemies around her with slightly chaotic but steady camera shifts,

Next is Adam getting more action through a brief shot of him charging towards the camera which reminded me of how Winter first struck against Qrow in chapter 3 of volume 3. The latter cut was part of animator, Ian Kedward’s sequence in that fight, but I’m unsure of who animated Adam’s portion of this sequence from here-on. Jumping slightly ahead, we get an interesting transition from Adam slicing to Sienna throwing her chain around. Only it’s not completely a transition, but because it’s a split-second and their actions flow well, it feels like one at normal speed. With more of Sienna’s agile moves, she snaps off her arrow again which starts with her facing towards the camera to then cleverly rotate around the arrow to highlight what it’s going to do. Moving ahead, we get one more action moment with Adam, this time with some additional funny character acting from the SDC guard as he tries to dodge the former’s strikes and attempts a right hook only to get schooled by Adam’s hilt again. Though it doesn’t end right there as we see a couple of shots of Adam framed dominantly, about to stab the guard while he’s down and he pleads for his life. Though there’s an excellent delayed reaction where Adam responds to Sienna’s call as if he got caught up in the blood lust. This short has been a good opportunity in general to add character to Adam and Sienna through just their facial expressions alone.

5) Adam and Sienna in the Throne Room

After all is said an done, we get another invisible cut to the throne room with another White Fang member running across the SDC facility hall. It would’ve been funny if it’s the same member that did the invisible cut after the forest scene, but they have different skin tones so that’s sadly not the case. In all seriousness, we don’t get any visual direction that’s too daring aside from the establishing overhead shot starting the sequence. An interesting observation is how in comparison, the seen that first introduced Sienna in volume 5 had he and Adam’s positions mirrored only she’s on her throne and Adam’s kneeling. This may visually support the fact Sienna was considering treating Adam as her equal in the future, so long as he did overstep his boundaries.

Not much else to add before moving on to the next short sequence through a transition that’s not an invisible cut but is something more like a jump cut? It’s honestly hard to describe, but it does go along with the motif of passage of time. One other thing to mention is the flame and how it’s animated. it doesn’t feel at all like a 3-D visual effect and is instead more like it was animated in 2-D with some filtering effects. Beyond that, not much else to add for the remainder of the short, though that’s not a bad thing since a moment of rest is needed to close off after two extensive action scenes. The only two things worth stating have to do with Adam. First is how when Adam is on the throne, there’s one shot where he is of distance from the White Fang members and another where we don’t see his full body from behind the throne. Both indicate the relationship between him and his followers. At this point in his story, he is less concerned about looking out for his fellow kind as he is about stroking his ego. To conclude, we get the most ironically-funny shot in the short where Adam gets exactly what he deserves and walks off leaving his mask behind feeling defeated. Some would find the choice to have him animated walking awkwardly to be strange when connecting to his last scene in volume 5. But in the context of the story of his character short, it works thematically.

Final Note

This was quite a short to cover, but there was so much packed in that both reinforced some things spoken by Blake before about Adam’s character while still peppering in insight into his psyche through a combination of facial expressions, adjustments to his line of dialogue and the in-genius transitioning techniques used. And there were still a couple more small details that weren’t fully covered like the red markings in Adam’s design added after the first scene or Ghira’s slightly younger character model. The visual direction demonstrated in just 7 minutes how in-spite of his hostile streak, Adam’s shift from the White Fang hero looked up to by his people to the tyrant whose thirst for power and dominance made his own followers turn on him.

While the short not totally perfect, its storyboards outmatch even the Weiss character short, which is saying a lot considering it was one of my favorites. It’s still a shame we don’t know who did the boards, but between them, Kerry and Connor, the ideas definitely payed off. The animators themselves also cannot be commended enough for the effort they poured into the short. There have been a few newer recruits being recognized by other more veteran animators, including Erika Soosar, John Yang, Michelle Yi and Jason Dickol. With Matt Drury added as another name, I do hope more fans will keep an eye out for them. Though none of this is to leave out the other animators involved with this short whose shots were unconfirmed, as they deserve to be kept an eye on in the future.

No doubt will there continue be criticisms and concern regarding the short though, as many wonder whether this will hinder on volume 6′s overall production. While the debate is a whole other subject for another day, it’s worth bearing in mind for now that shorts and volumes are two different things and the scale between them in terms of skill-set and more importantly, management, are night and day. For now, I intend to keep enjoying this short for both its story and as a potential sample of things to come.

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